A Whole New Level of Death
by GrowlingGiant
Summary: When the U.S.S Mojave, a hybrid crossover of aircraft carrier and cargo transporter, goes missing in the Bermuda triangle, it is presumed destroyed. What really happened is, through strange circumstance, it washed up in Alagaësia. How will a battalion of trained US soldiers and sailors change the story we all know well? Rated T for paranoia
1. Allow for Adjustment

**AN: This story is based off of a story idea that I first saw in Abelextra's story "you got a sword i got a gun", which is still quite short but looks like an excellent story to watch over. Thank you, Abelextra, for permission to use a similar plot to yours.**

 **These events take place during 'Eldest', roundabout when Roran is leaving Narda.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any Inheritance cycle characters, locations, etc. All of that is under the noble command of Christopher Paolini, although he owes us for selling the movie rights to 20th Century Fox. Seriously, that movie got 16% on rotten tomatoes.**

Chapter 1: A Brave New World

The U.S.S _Mojave_ was a state of the art multi-function ship. It was the first of it's kind, being a mix of aircraft carrier and cargo hauler, able to be used for either both simultaneously or one individually. It excelled at all testing, and was expected to arrive back in America from its testing in China on the eighteenth of July, 2019.

On the sixteenth July, 2019, a minor glitch in the navigational drive caused the ship, and it's entire crew, cargo, and the contingent of soldiers who had been training on her,to slip into the Bermuda Triangle, where it lost contact with the naval base in Oregon. After a brief spurt of panic in the naval base, the _Mojave_ was deemed lost, and all crew were considered lost at sea, and the funding for that strange half-breed type of ship was cut.

However, on the _Mojave_ , no such thing happened. They sailed on, oblivious to the panic they had left behind. Indeed, they only noticed something was wrong when a storm blew up. They tried to contact base to find out why they hadn't been informed of the storm's approach, at which point they realised that they had lost all contact with home base, while still able to tap into international radio stations. Without any specific orders, the captain, a British exchange officer by the name of Connor Sharp, made his decision.

Running up to the intercom, he briskly yelled "All hands secure cargo, payload and aircraft, and brace for stormy conditions! Drop anchor, cease engines, and lower the flag!"

The ship became a flurry of motion, as crewmembers dashed around securing things, moving things, and getting into position for what looked to be an imminent hurricane.

When the storm hit, it really rocked the boat. While the weight of the cargo and planes kept it mostly down, there were occasions were they could have sworn the boat left the water completely. Lightning flashed everywhere, causing eerie bursts of light followed by rolling thunder. As the captain looked out at the storm, he saw strange shapes in the dark, and heard odd noises. He would have discounted it as his imagination tricking him, except the other crewmembers on the bridge were equally disturbed. "Captain,I don't think this is a safe place for us." The first mate said.

Before the captain could reply, the ship gave a loud groan, and lifted clear out of the water, briefly throwing everyone around. It flew for a few moments, before crashing down in the water again. As it hit, there was a blinding flash, and the storm disappeared. It didn't just cease, or drift away, the entire storm disappeared into bright sunlight. Here one moment, gone the next.

The crew shakily withdrew from their various nooks and crannies, and began to take stock of the damage. Except for some superficial damage, and the loss of one of the troop carrier planes, the ship was mostly fine. however, there was absolutely nothing on any radio frequencies. No background chatter, no overlap, not even conventional radio stations. As well as that, their navigation system was malfunctioning, so they had no idea where they were.

The inquiry into that was soon abandoned, as the radar picked up a landmass to the east. Upon arrival, they found that in the middle of the island was a circle of semi-active volcanoes. The captain sent out a team in a helicopter, to see if there was anything on the other side. What they found shocked them.

"U.S.S Mojave, come in, this is the search team. Captain, you won't believe what we're seeing. There are these huge skeletons, they look like something out of legend. Call me crazy if you will, sir, but these look like the bones of…dragons."

"Well, Lieutenant Brake, given our situation, I think we can take our version of reality and stuff it. Return to base, we'll give a better investigation on the morrow. Over." _Dragons_. What in the world had happened to them? The captain's versatility, a virtue that had led him to be a master at all forms of strategy, now led him to accept that maybe, just maybe, they were dealing with forces they could not understand.

While still shocked by this revelation, Lieutenant Brake gave another message. "Search team to Mojave, recommending that we set an eastern heading. There is a considerably larger landmass there, according to what we can see. Over."

"Roger that, search team. Intercept us ASAP, we'll begin moving now. Who knows what terrors lurk in these unknown waters, so we want to be safe by nightfall, hopefully near civilisation."

The captain barked the orders to the helmsmen, and they struck up a course. After a couple of minutes, the search helicopter rejoined them. A couple of minutes after that, the bridge got their first view of the mainland. As they got closer, they noticed a few things through their binoculars. The first was smoke, but contained like you would expect in a mediaeval city. Second was the city itself, a collection of wooden huts clustered together. Then as they got closer, they saw a mass of people on the beach getting onto what looked like a trio of wooden barges. As they neared to the point where they would soon be spotted by the naked eye, they halted. The captain felt that their strangeness would almost definitely provoke attack, and while it looked like they could be easily take them out, he saw no reason to risk it, as any place that had dragons would almost definitely hold other tricks up its sleeve.

So after the barges pushed off, the Mojave moved in close enough to drop off a recon squad, dressed in what they hoped would help them blend in. Although they had no intention of raising Cain, they were sure to insult someone, so each person took a handgun with them.

The squad was surprised to see the captain get in the boat with them, and even more surprised that the gun he brought was Angelica, his prized 454 magnum revolver (With attached 30mm grenade launcher). As they walked up the beach, and neared the town, they saw the people grow more and more hostile to them, even spitting at their feet. WHen they reached the town centre, they saw the reason why.

A corpse lay in the middle of the road, its skull caved in, while another had a spear wound in the throat. Given that the gallows were empty, Captain Sharp postulated that the killer was one of the men seen leaving on the barges, and the town was too full for them to be regular citizens of the town, so they were visitors as well, explaining the bad attitude towards any other new people.

They walked up to the message board, and began to read it. They continued for a bit, until a man with a sword strapped to his belt and a crimson tunic with a flame embroidered on it strode up to them, and said "And what do you bloody think you're doing, swaggering into town with your fancy clothing, without weapons, and just reading our noticeboard? You got some nerve right there you blighted son of a b— " before the man, who the captain theorized was a soldier of some variety, found himself on the flat on his stomach, with another one of the American soldiers on his back keeping an arm around his throat, and using the other to restrain the man's right arm. "What are your orders, Captain?"

"Leave him alive, he did us no wrong. After all," he said bending down to talk to the floored soldier, "merely yesterday a group of strangers, pretending to be your friends, came in and slaughtered two of your comrades, before sailing away in your own boat. I would be more than angry, I would be incensed, I would be irate, and I would hunt them down until I found them and killed them. Tell me, what do you know, of the island to the west?"

The soldier visibly paled, both at the astute guess of the captain, and also the fact that they came from the west. The other people also paled, but were able to draw weapons. As one, the six men not otherwise occupied tensed, and their hands drifted to their weapons.

The captain stayed where he was. He calmly lifted his soldier off the strange one, lifted him up, and said "What is your name, soldier?"

"Hendrick. Hendrick Garnsson."

"Well, Hendrik, how about I offer you a chance to avenge yourself of your friends dishonour. I will personally hunt their killers down and make them pay. And all you need to do, is tell me everything you know about this country. See, I'm new here, just came from across the sea, and I have no idea where I am."

And his men watched as with barely a few sentences, their captain had gotten a hard-bitten, strange soldier to spill all the details they needed to get by.

They learnt how the King, Galbatorix, came to power by slaughtering all the dragons and Riders. How, with thirteen other evil Riders, he had subjugated the land, and how the breakaway states were the lands of the Elves, Dwarves, and the swarthy Men of Surda. Also how the only open resistance came from the Varden. They learnt of magic, and its users, and that all the Empire's soldiers were bound in oaths in a strange language, oaths that could never be broken. All this and more they learnt. When the man finished speaking, the only thing that the captain did was pull his men aside, and whisper "Kill them all."

"Captain?"

"They know we are not from around here, and that we have come from across the sea. From how we've seen these people react, that is highly unusual. If this king of theirs is that powerful, and that cruel, then what reason do we have to believe that he will not capture and torture us. I find this just as detestable as you do, but these people's oaths will make them go running to the king to report us. Do you think we could overcome an unknown threat?"

"No sir."

"Then this must be done."

As one they swallowed, pulled their guns from their hiding places, and murdered the town of Narda.

 **A/N: Thank you so much for reading. Please review, or PM me. I don't care what you tell me, I can stand to bear it.**


	2. Fitting in and Meeting

**A/N: Don't worry, this is the chapter where I plan for the Mojave to make a formal acquaintance with Roran and the other villagers from Carvahall, and make a plan to help the Varden. Also, you may notice I refer to Captain Sharp usually as just "the captain, but that is because I feel like having his name bandied about kind of lessens the importance of it. So, just don't hate about it. There will be a POV change in this chapter, but unless told so assume it is the captain. Really, the changes will be too infrequent to label each one.**

 **A/N 2: Thanks to Naerys Targaryen for the review.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizable names, locations, or events from the Inheritance Cycle.**

As they left the town, the men who had gone on the mission, down to the last man, felt a deep sense of shame at their deeds. So much so, that the captain called together a funeral for the men they killed. They explained to the crew what they had had to do, and were joined in the minute of silence for them. One of the more outspoken of them began to sing, and was joined by the rest of the crew.

"Into death,

Out of mind,

Gone from body,

All are blind.

"Gone are we,

From the earth,

We are free,

No more mirth.

"Upon our graves,

Are roses red,

To quell the fact,

That we are dead."

They spent the rest of the day in silence, where they were, watching over the dead of Narda. As the sun set, one of the pilots said "They deserve a decent cremation." So they went back to the town, and did just that. They piled the bodies up, and set fire to the town. In a few minutes, the fire was roaring, and the town of Narda burnt itself into oblivion.

The next morning, they made use of the crude map they had taken, with great shame, from one of the soldiers, and set a course for Teirm. As they went along, they made a more accurate chart of that bit of coastline. They came across a few other ships, but they had always managed to slip away before being spotted. They saw the same barges from Narda stopped a fair distance from the main city. As they watched, they saw one of the same men, with five companions, leave for the city. In an attempt to remain unnoticed, the Mojave slipped behind Sharktooth, a rocky escarpment to the east of the city, where they could observe from a distance, and use their more advanced viewing methods to remain out of sight.

The Mojave stayed there for two days, waiting for something to happen. The captain, after reviewing what they learnt from Hendrick, was of a mind to help these estranged men, but was also resolved to only contact them at sea, unless other circumstances arose. Although, when an aide came running into his cabin yelling "Sir, the city is on fire!", he thought other circumstances had indeed arisen.

He ran onto the bridge, and saw the city was indeed aflame. He cursed the estranged outlaws as brash, but watched in awe as they stole what had to be the biggest ship there, and made off into the night with it. He spun around, and yelled "Raise anchor, start the engine, and give chase to that ship. The time has come for this world to learn of our presence"

Immediately the bridge members began yelling orders to their respective areas of leadership, and the massive ship of war sailed on after their target, keeping all lights on the outside of the ship dark, effectively using the night to help hide them. Their quarry evaded pursuit during the night, but was caught up to by morning.

-/POV change/-

Roran was having a bad week. He'd crossed the Spine, stole from Narda, set fire to the docks at Teirm, and now found that the _Dragon Wing_ was being pursued by a large, grey monstrosity across the ocean. His friends were arming themselves, but paused when a booming voice issued forth across the waves. "This is the captain of the U.S.S Mojave. We intend no harm to you and your people. If you would be willing, we would like to send a representative across to discuss the terms of an alliance."

He sat stunned, and absentmindedly told someone to raise a flag to accept the messenger. A small boat was lowered off the side of the other ship, with three men in it, and began to move of its own volition. With no sails or oars, Roran could only think that the boat was powered and propelled by magic. Of course, that meant that they had a magician on their side, but that was negligible right now. If that ship was nearly as dangerous as it looked, then the only thing they could pray for was friendliness.

As the small boat neared, they could hear a whining, roaring noise, probably caused by that magical propulsion, before the boat came alongside them, and stopped moving. Someone lowered a rope, and the three men climbed up. Two of them were large, well-muscled men who Roran guessed were the backup, while the other had a more refined air around him. Although no less lean and toned, he had the air of a leader about him, civilized and sophisticated. Roran chose to glare at this one.

Rather then back down, or even be disturbed, the man held his gaze, allowing him to see the eyes of a man who had seen combat. They deeply unnerved him, so he looked away first. Then with a deep laugh, the man pulled him into an embrace, like two friends would do after seeing each other for the first time in a long while. He pushed him away, and stared at him curiously. One of the other men said. "Sorry about that. Where he comes from, that is the normal way to greet people."

Roran saw Joed Raise an eyebrow, and open his mouth to say "Odd. I have traveled to most of Alagaesia, and have never met a tribe of humans that greeted with embraces."

The huggy man looked sheepish, and said "Yeah, about that…"

 **I am a line break. I want to learn about the world around me. Please tell me about it.**

"So, let me get this straight. You guys are from a land across the sea, and have, as you put it, jumped the pond with your advanced weaponry to help us destroy the Empire."

"Not quite. We were not intending to make the journey, but there was a rather fierce storm, and we ended up here. We have, however, decided to go against tradition and help you. To this end we are not leaving until the threat to your nation has been extinguished. Although, from what we've heard, you yourself are just as commendable, Roran Stronghammer."

Roran put his head in his hands. It was bad enough that the villagers, people who he had lived with his entire life, had given him their undying loyalty, now these strangers with weapons inconceivable to him were calling him out for his good deeds.

The one who had taken up the negotiation, a man who had introduced himself as Captain Connor Sharp of the U.S.S Mojave, said "I know how you feel. Ordinary bloke, elevated to a position of power under duress, and expected to lead everyone else. Whether or not you want it or not, we will help the Varden. If you do not want our help, we will sail on ahead of you and leave you behind, although we would rather stay to help you. By your leave, we would defend you and your people until you reach what little safety the Varden can offer."

Lifting his head from his hands, Roran gave a curt nod.

 **A/N: don't forget to review, favourite, and follow.**


	3. Show-Off!

**A/N: And we are back to the captain's POV, now referring to him as Captain Sharp. Please point out any errors you see, and I apologize if over time updates lag behind what we all would like. Also, the ship in question is completely fictional, both in design and name, so don't hate on anything that may come up, unless completely unreasonable e.g nuclear weaponry.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizable names, locations, or events from the Inheritance Cycle.**

As the _Mojave_ and the _Dragon Wing_ sailed on, passing the tip of the Spine, or what Captain Sharp referred to jokingly as "the coccyx", they saw three ships leave the oceanic port of Kausta. with black sails, and no flags, they were assumed to be from the Empire. While the captain had laughed off what little threat they could have posed, he had agreed with Jeod that currently they had an advantage over Galbatorix, the man in question still not knowing that the Mojave, along with its advanced weaponry, exists.

Rather, they had slipped away, assuring Roran that, should they be needed, they would be able to still see them and intervene. With some thought, the crew had cobbled together makeshift smoke machines, hiding the Mojave in an impenetrable mist. Although Jeod had given a brief description on how people of Alagaesia could do magic, they were confident that any magician on board any of the three pursuers would be busy chasing the _Dragon Wing_ to worry about the patch of mist following them about.

Roran had made contact a couple of days into the chase, voicing discontent over the perseverance of the chasing party. Agreeing that it was just a matter of time before something went wrong, Captain Sharp formed a plan that would satisfy all parties involved, other than the chasing one, who remained unaware.

 **I am still a line break. Thank you for all you have told me about your world.**

The next morning was eventful to say the least. When the chasing vessels let forth a volley of arrows toward the _Dragon Wing_ , each with a blob of green fire on the end, the impenetrable mist trailing them faded, revealing what would be one of the last things they saw: A fully equipped, modern ship of war, with all its formidable weaponry dedicated on destroying them.

A volley of shots rang, carrying a cluster of shells into the three ships, pulverizing them utterly, while the crew of the _Dragon Wing_ could only look on in horror as to how easily the Empire's forces had been obliterated. As Captain Sharp watched through his binoculars, he could see the realization of just how powerful they were crawl across their faces. He sighed in despair. Oh well, they were going to go through this phase again.

Getting on a powerboat to the _Dragon Wing_ , Captain Sharp met with Roran, Jeod, and Uthar in the captain's quarters, and Roran was the first to break the ominous silence. "When you said you were in possession of advanced weaponry, you failed to mention that this weaponry of yours could obliterate three ships in seconds. Nor, I think, is that all the weaponry you have at your command. I know not of how the Varden will react to this, but I fail to believe they will just accept it on our word."

"That I know, Stronghammer, but what other choice do they have? We could wipe out their entire army in a matter of minutes." Captain Sharp replied.

"The army yes, but you would find that they have a dragon that would rain death down upon you from the skies."

"Not if we had anything to do with it. Just accept that we are doing what we will, and you might be able to cope. Over time, our actions may shock you, but we would only do so if that got rid of the Mad King faster. would you not agree, you who have crossed the Spine and set fire to Teirm, that determination will lead to unsavoury, sometimes deadly, acts?"

Captain Sharp watched as Roran sighed, and put his head in his hands. Every time he settled down, and thought "This is the worst it can get," the world threw him yet another reevaluating piece of information. "At least know that we are on your side."

POV Change: The Mad King Galbatorix.

Galbatorix sat on his throne, unworried on the outside, but questioning on the inside. the Ra'zac had reported that the town of Narda was no more than a sooty smear on the ground and some burnt out husks, something that happened after that rural ant had passed through. Then the ships he had dispatched to capture the upstart Rider's cousin had gone missing. All this reeked of a conspiracy of some kind, maybe some trick of the Varden. No worries, no army could beat him.

What was worrying was the ability of a group of untrained peasants to steal his best ship from the port at Teirm. Lord Risthart would pay for his error. Maybe it was time to reintroduce him to the burrow worms…

POV Change: Eragon Shadeslayer

Eragon scryed his cousin Roran. He saw him sitting at a table on a ship, talking with Jeod and a couple of others, neither of whom he recognized. He added a spell to let him hear, and heard "-rid of the Mad King faster. would you not agree, you who have crossed the Spine and set fire to Teirm, that determination will lead to unsavoury, sometimes deadly, acts?"

Eragon frowned. Crossed the Spine, set fire to Teirm? Roran had been busy. The fact he didn't know of his cousins deeds, while he claimed to care, rankled him. He would, however have to ask Oromis if there was any way to communicate with Roran from Ellesmera. Also, who was with him, that spoke so simply of killing Galbatorix?

Whoever it was, he hoped they were heading for the Varden. That army could use all the help it could get, even if it was just cocky idiots who could barely fight, every person counted. maybe he could talk to Oromis about getting the elves mobilized to fight in this war. Maybe it was time that the Varden took the fight to Galbatorix.

 **Sorry this chapter is so short, but I think you all would prefer less more often. If I am wrong, please tell me so. As always, please review, follow, and favourite!**


	4. A Much-needed Explanation

**A/N: Woohoo guys, thanks for the support. Doing a slight time skip to the Battle of the Burning Plains, as the rest is unimportant to the events relating to the Mojave. Suffice to say, they went with the** _ **Dragon Wing**_ **as far as the coast of Surda, and prepared to rain fiery death down on the Empire from above. Captain Sharp, however, is on the** _ **Dragon Wing**_ **. Also, please note that yes, the story up to now has been rushed, but this is my first fanfic and I really feel these events are unimportant.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any recognizable names, locations, or events from the Inheritance Cycle.**

The time had come. When the _Dragon Wing_ , with Captain Sharp on board, had come up the Jiet River, they had seen a pitched battle being waged on the Burning Plains, just as expected from Lady Alarice's information. As they watched, a fierce roar came forth, and they saw a sapphire-blue dragon, with some sort of elf on it's back, rise up to challenge them.

As Captain Sharp watched, Roran tensed, and had what appeared to be a mental conversation with someone. When he relaxed, the dragon, and it's rider, flew off to rejoin the battle. Roran turned around and said to his crew "Alright everyone! We are going to fight to the bitter end here. Arm the ballistae, and prepare to engage!"

He then turned to Captain Sharp, and said "I think now might just be the time to unleash a bit more of that advanced arsenal of yours."

He smiled grimly. "Just wait. If these people are scared by a dragon, wait until they see what we do to the Empire. If you can contact someone though, I would highly recommend getting all the Varden's forces out of the line of fire. Things are going to get a little bit dangerous out there."

Just as he finished speaking, A whistle started to build up to a low roar. As they watched, a plane, specifically an F-18, flew over, dropping a couple of bombs. The explosions rippled over the battlefield, demolishing a large chunk of the Empire's army. for a brief moment, both sides stood shocked at what happened, before the drone of helicopters filled the air, and a pair of Boeing AH-64 Apache's unleashed missiles upon the Empire's forces. More fiery explosions rent the air, and the Varden and the Empire began retreating from the battlefield, fortunately allowing the helicopters to burn ever greater swathes out of the enemy.

The Varden stopped running when they saw a conspicuous lack of any attacks on them, and turned to observe the show. Eventually only one soldier was left, a man who Captain Sharp calmly walked up to and shot in the head. From behind the cover of some smoke, a dragon, red as a ruby dipped in blood, rose up and flew away, shocking all present into stunned silence. Wheeling in the sky, the helicopters made a covert exit, as everyone was too concerned with the appearance of another dragon. The blue descended on Captain sharp, and the rider uttered a brief phrase. Before the captain fell into an enchanted slumber, he turned on the safety on his gun.

He woke up, tied to a chair, in an ornate tent, with a few people in front of him. One was a female elf, or so he assumed, as he had never actually seen any elves. Another was a man, who looked like what Captain Sharp assumed a hybrid of man and elf would look like. The third was a dark skinned man, with a small but ornate crown upon his head, and a regal air about him. Fourth was a man who Captain Sharp would describe as battle-weary, a man who looked like he took part in more battles than were healthy. Fifth was a woman of short stature with thick, curly brown hair. Last was a dark skinned woman, who the others, save the short woman, seemed to defer to. All of them were locked in a heated debate, again save the shorter woman. He groaned to get their attention.

All of them looked at him in shock. The half-elf said "Impossible. First your mind is impenetrable to all, now you overthrow a spell-induced slumber like it was just a simple sleep. Who, or what, are you?"

While Captain Sharp was still waking up, and thus incapable to answer, the short woman said "Come now. Here we are, most of the Varden's leaders in one tent, and we have not the manners to introduce ourselves to our guests. Is not the testimony of Roran Stronghammer enough to prove this man's worth? Than consider how forces under his command, again according to the testimony of Roran Stronghammer, wiped out the Empire's army with ease, and left us unharmed. I for one, will support him."

Finally turning to the captain, who was subtly testing the bonds binding him, she said "Hi, I'm Angela, the most interesting person in camp. I hope your crew are okay, and I am truly sorry for you getting into this mess."

He paused, and said "How do you know about my crew?"

"Oh, sweetie, I really hope you get home. As to how I know about your crew, I make it my job to know everything of interest that is going on. Call it more of a hobby really, not nearly enough happens for it to be a job."

The others, including Captain Sharp, stared at her after this revelation. Captain Sharp spluttered "Sweetie?!", the half-elf said "Not nearly enough happens?", and the others just sighed and looked shocked. The captain said "Um, I would appreciate it if you could tell me why I am tied to a chair like a criminal, that would be nice. Also, names would be nice."

The dark skinned woman sighed, shook her head, and said "Very well. I am Nasuada, leader of the Varden, that is Arya Drottningu," she pointed at the elf, "King Orrin of Surda," she pointed at the man with the crown, "Jormundur, my second in command," she pointed at the grim faced man, "you have already met Angela the sorceress," the curly haired woman smiled and waved at him, "and that is the lynchpin of all our hopes. Eragon Shadeslayer, the last free Dragon Rider."

At the last title, Captain Sharp saw that both the newly-dubbed Eragon and Arya looked uncomfortable at the last title, but he merely filed it away for later. He nodded, and said. "I think it is fair, given you have introduced yourselves, to introduce myself. I am Captain Sharp, of the U.S.S Mojave, and I hail from a distant land, across the Sea."

He smirked at the rather predictable impact this statement had. All of them, save Angela, who joined in with his smirk, looked at him with their faces showing a mixture of shock and disbelief. Arya was the first to speak, breaking into a rabble of half-formed questions "How did you-You really came-."

Captain Sharp kept his smirk on, as the group managed to collect themselves again, and the newly-dubbed Nasuada said "Can we assume that the flying death machines were under your command, or should we be completely worried right now?"

"No, no, those are mine. I have a ship, off the coast of Surda, with about two battalions of soldiers on it. Assuming of course, that battalions are still 500 men here?"

"Yes it is. I am interested in your weapon, give that none of us can operate it."

"Did you turn off the safety?"

"What kind of weapon has an off-switch?"

"One that could easily kill a man with each attack. I am perfectly willing to cross our paths with yours, as far as plans of killing Galbatorix go, but will not be ordered around. Whatever I do, I do of my own free will."

"Very well, but you will need to swear an oath of fealty to the Varden."

Captain Sharp turned to Eragon, who had just spoken, and laughed. "As much as you think I do, I don't. I do not need to join the Varden. I could go join Galbatorix, or wipe everyone out and claim this land for my own. I would rather not, but don't presume to control me. I have an oath to my country, and will not swear myself to another. And, why did you flinch when Nasuada called you the last free Dragon Rider, you and Arya both. If it had just been you, I would have written it off as nervousness, or a sense of anxiety, but I think you are hiding something. Something to do with a Dragon Rider." He smiled as Eragon recoiled. "I'm right, aren't I? So don't test me."

Nasuada leaned forward and frowned. "Eragon? What is he talking about?"

He turned to her. "Something I have sworn never to reveal. Although, it would appear that I was less discreet than I thought."

Captain Sharp turned back to Nasuada. "So, will you accept my help?"


	5. Surprise!

Guess who finished Nanowrimo early?

I got a few questions from a guest reviewer, so I thought I would answer those here

1: In actual fact, I signed up for Nanowrimo before beginning this fanfic, and I did not realize that I would have such a good response to this.

2: Really, I understand. The concept of the Mojave is that it is fully self-contained, and can accomplish most of the necessary tasks that other ships can. I just picked aircraft carrier and cargo ship because they seemed like a good combination to accomplish that. Also, this story is set, in the start at least, in 2019. I am almost certain they would have stuck ship-to-ship guns on aircraft carriers. I will, however, almost certainly do a re-write of this story.

3:Really, I have no idea yet. I just planned for them to find out later.

4: Right Now!

5: If you try to take my writing from me, I will kill you and steal your money to buy writing materials. I will also sell your kidneys in India to buy myself a Porsche.

On to the Chapter!

* * *

The Mojave swung around, once more led by Captain Sharp. They had officially allied themselves with the Varden, and had been instructed to bring the the ship upriver so that the Captain could make a small display of might, and thus scare away any trying to manipulate them or steal their stuff.

It was a petty show, but one that worked wonders on any trying to get their advanced weaponry. The Captain had informed them that of the people he negotiated with, a decent amount had only gotten interested at the mention of said arms. This, he felt, did not bode well for any hopes they may harbour of independence from all the petty politics that surrounded any group of leaders.

Well, if they thought that some of the most patriotic U.S soldiers ever—having needed that to be offered service on the Mojave—would be easily flattered into submission would almost definitely be met with brute force. No, not even being trapped further away from home then they thought physically possible would shake their loyalties, and those were given only to their homeland, their captain, and their army.

Lieutenant Brake thought that it was about time they had a bit of fun, although the captain had warned them to keep all their infantry weapons secret, claiming that the reason would take too long to explain in a letter. That sat well with the Lieutenant, as he knew all too well what risks could be posed if a spy read their communications, after being ambushed in the Iraq war by a small group of insurgents who had merely had a man in the nearby post office, where all communications were routed through.

So they had a fanfare blaring over the tannoy, and one of the soldiers had sheepishly handed over part of his stash of fireworks. The result was that the Varden were terrified that night by the sound and light, along with the thunder of the cannons wiping out a team of Imperial soldiers that had been in hiding in the river mud, hoping to strike the Varden down as they slept.

Suffice to say, the lieutenant was informed the next morning by the captain that all attempts to manipulate them had rapidly stopped upon seeing what happened to the Imperials.

Their current orders were to bombard the port city of Teirm, sending a strong message to the Mad King Galbatorix: The newcomers were most definitely powerful.

The city swam appeared in the fog, and the Mojave readied all guns, waiting for the command to engage. Accompanying a nod, the captain simply said "Fire all cannons."

Cry havoc, and let slip the dogs of war!

The cannons boomed forth their attack, and the port of Teirm, already damaged by fire, was destroyed in a fiery explosion. Another set of reports sounded, and the main city took heavy damage, leveling almost half of it and setting fire to another third. The guns rang out a third and fourth time, and the city of Teirm was wiped from the ground on which it had stood, leaving only ash and ruins behind, along with a few small huts and a handful of people. After Roran had told them what he had learned through Eragon of Carvahall's fate, the loyal crew were all too willing to enact the same fate on the city that was one of the only ones Galbatorix had left on the coast after Narda's murder.

In the distance, however, the roar of a dragon promised incoming trouble, as did said dragon appearing over the horizon.

A/N: Aaaaaand, cut! That is it for this chapter, folks. I thought I would try out this fad that the fiction world affectionately calls "cliffhangers". Honestly, I don't know. I would never hang a cliff off one at least. Also, I am in desperate need of a better title, so let me know in a review or PM what you think it should be.


	6. Guilt, My Friend, I Missed You

**A/N: And we are back in business for Teirm's Death, Part the Second. Now, is the dragon arriving over the horizon Thorn, or Shruiken? We shall see, dear readers, we shall see. I must admit, marinefan123, that your review did make quite a lot of sense. Can I draw to your attention, though, events like the Haditha killings, where innocent old men, women and children were shot at close range while unarmed? Or the My Lai massacre, where reports claim that U.S military attacked innocent civilians, and killed anywhere between 347 and 504 of them? The U.S military is not without sin. I only fear as to what this says about me as a person. Now, bask in my literary greatness, and bring me the head of Stephenie Meyer on a silver platter.**

The fearsome beast of fire and death rose over the grim horizon, it's ruby scales reflecting shafts of dawn light at the Mojave. To their surprise, the dragon landed on the coast, and it's rider dismounted. Captain sharp and the pair of helicopter pilots who had been involved in the Battle of the Burning Plains recognized the dragon as one under the sway of Galbatorix. The rider gazed across the waters, and, in a voice booming like thunder, said "I wish to meet with your leader. I will swear an oath, on pain of death, that I will do him no harm, nor attempt to subvert his mind or body through magic."

The crew on the bridge looked at Captain Sharp, who appeared, despite all odds, to be considering it. "Sir?" lieutenant Brake asked, worry clear in his voice.

"Don't worry. I spoke with some of the magicians in the Varden, and it is physically impossible to break an oath made in the language of magic. If I get him to close all the loopholes, it should be quite safe."

He then picked up the mike for the tannoy, and said "I want your oath to also include your dragon, and to be made in the ancient language."

The rider looked thoughtful, and said "Very well. Do you have any among you who speak the language that can form the vow for me?"

"Not really. The closest thing we have is Old Norse. Shall I say a few phrases and see if it works?"

"Okay."

Tapping on a keypad a few times to bring up an Old Norse translator, Captain Sharp said a few brief phrases. Then after receiving confirmation that it was working, he said "Repeat after me. Eka otherúm eom néiat haina Captain Sharp unin noen vei."

The rider did this, so Captain Sharp got on a boat, and rowed out to meet him. The rider introduced himself as 'Murtagh', and explained his purpose there, both real and official. "The king desires your services, Captain. You are an oddity in this land, much like that herbalist Angela, and he is quite maniacal over hoarding oddities. Indeed, the only one who exceeds his obsession is an old hermit in the wilderness, who has resisted all efforts, both magical and physical, to be found.

"I should warn you that the longer you do not join Galbatorix, the greater his obsession will grow. As well as your men, who he can see are highly trained, he lusts for your technology, knowing it could tip the balance of the war.

"My personal reason for being here is a bit more complicated. I am enslaved to the king, through an oath that is similar to the one I gave you. I request that, should I ask, you would swiftly put me out of my misery."

"Wait, what now?"

"I have plans in place, long term though they are. Should they fail, Galbatorix would not hesitate to make my life a living hell. I would ask that you would end my suffering, should that happen. Really, you are the only group of people the king fears right now, having demonstrated your might on the Burning Plains. If I may ask, what is it that you are equipped with? No, do not tell. He knows how to repeal oaths in the ancient language, and would question me if he sensed I knew anything. He will now be even more terrified by this new revelation, that you can level cities in minutes."

"That was fun."

"Indeed. I found it quite entertaining to watch, knowing that the king will likely grow even more feared of you. He thinks it is magic, and that you are all powerful magicians. I saw the shells, though his arrogance will prevent him from doing even that much."

They talked for a bit more, mostly touching on things of little to no consequence, before Connor said "Well, we should be leaving. I hope you will not need to hold me to my oath, but you never know. Farewell Murtagh, son of Morzan."

And the two parted ways, leaving one to return to the seas and the other to the skies, both having been changed by the meeting.

* * *

"Captain? What was the topic of the meeting?"

"It would appear, Lieutenant Brake, that the Mad King has taken an interest in us. This meeting was an invitation to join him, as well as a not-so-subtle threat of what would happen if we did not. The man also had a request to make of us."

"Oh?"

"He asked that we would kill him, should he ask."

"Ah. Euthanasia."

"Indeed."

The helmsman, a certain Ensign Pierce said "Sir, I know we should not be questioning my superiors, but mindlessly slaughtering whole cities seems a bit excessive. I mean, I can understand armies, but just whole cities of innocents…"

"Ensign, I know that our deeds here trouble you. But when you look at our history, this is completely justifiable. I find it just as repulsive, but this is a new world, where we have no aid coming to get us out of trouble should we get in it. We have to do some unsavoury things, but I think our lives are more important than theirs."

The Captain laughed sadly. "And so we descend into bigotry and superiority. After all, we have the might, we should make this land a conquest of the United States of America. It might do good to this land. But that is not our right. We have chosen a side, we can not just begin to question them without reason."

"Sir, yes sir."

And the U.S.S Mojave sailed away, returning to Surda, to receive new orders.

 **A/N: Thanks for reading, don't forget to follow, favourite, and review!**


	7. Much Sadness

**A/N: To all the people who feel like the Americans are feeling unnecessarily cruel and bloodthirsty, remember that the only knowledge they have of their foe is what the Varden have told them. Also, sorry about the long wait. My only excuse is that… I wrote (and published) a book! Check it out on the Kindle store, title of Knife's Edge, author Gary Johnson, cover are is same as my profile pic.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any content of the original Inheritance Cycle.**

The Mojave sailed around the coast, docking neatly in the port of Dauth. Once again, Captain Sharp locked himself in his quarters, and refused to speak to anyone. He had done this after his discussion he had had with the other dragon rider, and seemed inconsolably miserable.

Lieutenant Brake knocked on the door. "Sir? The crew have something to say."

"Please, go ahead."

"We think it would be best for our sanity if we disassociated ourselves with this war."

"I agree. I thought, from what the Varden had said, that the Empire was all evil and that the people serving it were doing it of their own volition. Thus I could reconcile my conscience to slaughtering them like sheep. However, it would appear that we were deceived. Galbatorix apparently has ways of enslaving people to his will through no will of theirs. What we have done is simply slaughter hundreds of innocents, who we were led to believe were evil.

"I will not let this happen again. We cannot allow ourselves to be led astray by manipulative fools. We should do the right thing."

"What exactly is the right thing?"

"I don't know. But it is not this."

* * *

Galbatorix was enraged and confused. All of his efforts to identify the mysterious people who had arrived in Alagaesia had failed, even his spies in the Varden had been unable to find out who they were. All they had been able to discover was that the new people had arrived from somewhere over the Eastern Sea, something which greatly worried the king. The elves, long ago, had come from over the Eastern Sea, as had the Urgals. It would appear that, whatever that land was, it bred strong and mighty folk.

This was further evidenced by the utter devastation they had unleashed on his army and the city of Teirm. He knew, also, that the city of Narda had been burnt down, but this was the fourth time that had happened in that city's past.

He was worried that the Varden would have portrayed him and his Empire as people who were only evil, and whose favourite pastimes were things like murdering children. He would readily agree that his methods were wrong, but one would have to admit that the last hundred years were some of the most stable the land had ever seen. If only the Varden would actually negotiate with him, instead of making impossible demands, he would happily do so.

Instead their self-righteousness made them refuse to believe that Galbatorix could be good, or even willing to end the war peacefully. They believed that he deserved only death for is sins, sins he had, in actual fact, never committed.

After all, none of them had seen what it was he had done on Doru Araeba, instead believing what he had had to say to secure his place. If he could just show these newcomers the proof, they would surely think again before following his enemies.

* * *

Captain Sharp walked quickly and determinedly through the Varden camp, rage and passion etched on every line of his face. The people he passed leapt aside for him, having heard the tale of the man with an army so powerful, it burnt down cities like they were sandcastles, and did not wish to inadvertently anger him even further.

The captain did not see this, seeing as his target was up ahead: The pavilion where Nasuada and her fellow leaders performed their political duties. Even the Urgals guarding it looked like they did not want to stand between the one they called the "foreign demon" and his prey, although their duties and vows would allow them no other option.

"Sir? Do you have an appointment with the Lady Nasuada? Only the war council is currently in an emergency session, and we were told to not allow entry to anyone."

"I will be allowed entry, and I will kill any who dare stand in my path. Anyway, surely as a leader of a faction in this army I should have been invited?"

Before the Nighthawks could respond, Captain Sharp pushed through them angrily, and strode into the meeting. He slammed his fists down on the table, and roared "You lied to me! You gave me the idea that the enemy served Galbatorix of their own free will, and now I find out that they were forced into slavery with him. Well, I say that unless you give me the full truth, neither I nor my men will follow your orders. Should you wish to contact me, I will be on my ship."


End file.
